The Man with the Golden Gun
The Man with the Golden Gun is a 1974 British spy film, the ninth entry in the James Bond series and the second to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. A loose adaptation of Ian Fleming's novel of same name, the film has Bond sent after the Solex Agitator, a device that can harness the power of the sun, while facing the assassin Francisco Scaramanga, the "Man with the Golden Gun". The action culminates in a duel between them that settles the fate of the Solex. The Man with the Golden Gun was the fourth and final film in the series directed by Guy Hamilton. The script was written by Richard Maibaum and Tom Mankiewicz. The film was set in the face of the 1973 energy crisis, a dominant theme in the script—Britain had still not yet fully overcome the crisis when the film was released in December 1974. The film also reflects the then-popular martial arts film craze, with several kung fu scenes and a predominantly Asian location, being shot in Thailand, Hong Kong, and Macau. Part of the film is also set in Beirut, Lebanon, making it the first Bond film to include a Middle Eastern location. The film saw mixed reviews, with Christopher Lee's performance as Scaramanga, intended to be a villain of similar skill and ability to Bond, being praised; but reviewers criticised the film as a whole, particularly the comedic approach, and some critics described it as the lowest point in the canon. Although the film was profitable, it is the fourth-lowest-grossing Bond film in the series. It was also the final film to be co-produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, with Saltzman selling his 50% stake in Danjaq, LLC, the parent company of Eon Productions, after the release of the film. Plot In London, a golden bullet with James Bond's code "007" etched into its surface is received by MI6. It is believed that it was sent by famed assassin Francisco Scaramanga, who uses a golden gun, to intimidate the agent. Because of the perceived threat to the agent's life, M relieves Bond of a mission revolving around the work of a scientist named Gibson, thought to be in possession of information crucial to solving the energy crisis with solar power. Bond sets out unofficially to find Scaramanga. After retrieving a spent golden bullet from a belly dancer in Beirut and tracking its manufacturer to Macau, Bond sees Andrea Anders, Scaramanga's mistress, collecting the shipment of golden bullets at a casino. Bond follows her to Hong Kong and in her Peninsula Hotel room pressures her to tell him about Scaramanga, his appearance and his plans; she directs him to the Bottoms Up Club. The club proves to be the location of Scaramanga's next 'hit', Gibson, from which Scaramanga's dwarf henchman Nick Nack steals the "Solex agitator", a key component of a solar power station. Before Bond can assert his innocence, however, Lieutenant Hip escorts him away from the scene, taking him to meet M and Q in a hidden headquarters in the wreck of the RMS Queen Elizabeth in the harbour. M assigns 007 to retrieve the Solex agitator and assassinate Scaramanga. Bond then travels to Bangkok to meet Hai Fat, a wealthy Thai entrepreneur suspected of arranging Gibson's murder. Bond poses as Scaramanga, but his plan backfires because Scaramanga himself is being hosted at Hai Fat's estate. Bond is captured and placed in Fat's dojo, where the fighters are instructed to kill him. After escaping with the aid of Hip and his nieces, Bond speeds away on a long tail boat along the river and reunites with his British assistant Mary Goodnight. Scaramanga subsequently kills Hai Fat and usurps control of his enterprise, and takes the Solex. Anders visits Bond, revealing that she had sent the bullet to London and wants Bond to kill Scaramanga. In payment, she promises to hand the Solex over to him at a Muay Thai venue the next day. At the match, Bond discovers Anders dead and meets Scaramanga. Bond spots the Solex on the floor and is able to smuggle it away to Hip, who passes it to Goodnight. Attempting to place a homing device on Scaramanga's car, she is locked into the vehicle's boot. Bond sees Scaramanga driving away and steals a showroom car to give chase, coincidentally with Sheriff J.W. Pepper seated within it. Bond and Pepper follow Scaramanga in a car chase across Bangkok, which concludes when Scaramanga's car transforms into a plane, which flies him, Nick Nack and Goodnight to his private island. Picking up Goodnight's tracking device, Bond flies a seaplane into Red Chinese waters and lands at Scaramanga's island. Scaramanga welcomes Bond and shows him the high-tech solar power plant he has taken over, the technology for which he intends to sell to the highest bidder. While demonstrating the equipment, Scaramanga uses a powerful solar beam to destroy Bond's plane. Scaramanga then proposes a pistol duel with Bond on the beach; the two men stand back to back and are instructed by Nick Nack to take twenty paces, but when Bond turns and fires, Scaramanga has vanished. Nick Nack leads Bond into Scaramanga's Funhouse where Bond stands in the place of a mannequin of himself; when Scaramanga walks by, Bond takes him by surprise and kills him. Goodnight, in waylaying one of Scaramanga's henchman who falls into a pool of liquid helium, upsets the balance of the solar plant, which begins to go out of control. Bond retrieves the Solex unit just before the island explodes, and they escape unharmed in Scaramanga's Chinese junk. Bond then fends off a final attack by Nick Nack, who had smuggled himself aboard, subduing him. Cast * Roger Moore as James Bond: An MI6 agent who receives a golden bullet, supposedly from Scaramanga, indicating that he is a target of Scaramanga. * Christopher Lee as Francisco Scaramanga: The main villain and assassin who is identified by his use of a golden gun; he also has a 'superfluous papilla', or supernumerary nipple. Scaramanga plans to misuse solar energy for destructive purposes. Lee was Ian Fleming's step-cousin and regular golf partner. Scaramanga has been called "the best-characterised Bond villain yet." * Britt Ekland as Mary Goodnight: Bond's assistant. Described by the critic of the The Sunday Mirror as being "an astoundingly stupid blonde British agent". Ekland had previously been married to Peter Sellers, who appeared in the 1967 Bond film, Casino Royale. * Maud Adams as Andrea Anders: Scaramanga's mistress. Adams described the role as "a woman without a lot of choices: she's under the influence of this very rich, strong man, and is fearing for her life most of the time; and when she actually rebels against him and defects is a major step." The Man with the Golden Gun was the first of three Bond films in which Maud Adams appeared; in 1983, she played a different character, Octopussy, in the film of the same name. She would also later have a cameo as an extra in Roger Moore's last Bond film, A View to a Kill. * Hervé Villechaize as Nick Nack: Scaramanga's dwarf manservant and accomplice. Villechaize was later known to television audiences as Tattoo, in the series Fantasy Island. * Richard Loo as Hai Fat: A Thai millionaire industrialist who was employing Scaramanga to assassinate the inventor of the "Solex" (a revolutionary solar energy device) and steal the device. * Soon-Tek Oh as Lieutenant Hip: Bond's local contact in Hong Kong and Bangkok. Soon-Tek Oh trained in martial arts for the role, and his voice was partially dubbed over. * Clifton James as Sheriff J.W. Pepper: A Louisiana sheriff who happens to be on holiday in Thailand. Hamilton liked Pepper in the previous film, Live and Let Die, and asked Mankewicz to write him into The Man with the Golden Gun as well. Pepper's inclusion has been seen as one of "several ill-advised lurches into comedy" in the film. * Bernard Lee as M: The head of MI6. * Marc Lawrence as Rodney: An American gangster who attempts to outshoot Scaramanga in his funhouse. Lawrence also appeared in Diamonds Are Forever. * Desmond Llewelyn as Q: The head of MI6's technical department. * Marne Maitland as Lazar: A gunsmith based in Macau who manufactures golden bullets for Scaramanga. * Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny. * James Cossins as Colthorpe: An MI6 armaments expert who identifies the maker of Scaramanga's golden bullets. The first draft of the script originally called the role Boothroyd until it was realised that was also Q's name and it was subsequently changed. * Carmen du Sautoy as Saida: A Beirut belly dancer. Saida was originally written as overweight and wearing excessive make-up, but the producers decided to cast a woman closer to the classic Bond girl. External links * Category:Films Category:1974 release Category:James Bond series Category:Roger Moore films Category:Action Films